Shadow Magic (Darkling Mage 1)

Bastion shrugged. “For whatever reason. Said to wait for her here.”

I had an immediate sinking feeling. That my earlier encounter with Thea had involved such a severe haranguing made the prospect of seeing her again so soon less than pleasurable. I wiped irritably at my forehead with the back of my sleeve.

“Don’t do that,” Bastion said, unfolding his arms, almost reaching out with a hand to stop me. “Here.” He tossed me a towel from the pile on my bed.

“Um. Thanks.” I rubbed at my face, eyeing him warily.

“No, no. You should dab. Just, like, pat at your face. Gives you wrinkles otherwise, if you’re too harsh with your skin.”

“Wow. Okay. Wasn’t expecting beauty tips from you, but here we are.” I patted at my skin as he watched, his expression a little too vigilant. “You do this yourself?”

Bastion nodded, his face stern, serious. “Keeps me pretty.”

I laughed. This might have been the longest we’d been in the same space without wanting to kill each other. But then a voice drifted in from the doorway, and I felt relief in knowing that the pressure of discovering whether I could actually be friends with Bastion was off.

“This isn’t so bad,” Prudence said, walkin

g in with her arms folded, appraising the room.

“Yeah?” I said, grinning. I panicked, briefly, wondering if I had left any of my underwear on my bed. Quick check: I was clear. I’d packed it all in the closet. “You like what I’ve done with the place?”

Bastion grunted. “I mean it hardly took any effort.”

I tutted and cocked my head. “You had to ruin it, Brandt. And you and I were getting along so well, too.”

“Play nice, boys.”

Thea’s voice flooded the room with its authority, and both Bastion and Prudence’s spines went straighter just as soon as she walked in. It was a reminder that even in the arcane underground, everyone knew that you were supposed to look and be your sharpest when your boss was sniffing around.

“That’s what I keep telling them,” Prudence said. I tried to get her attention, to give her a betrayed look, but I could tell she was avoiding my gaze.

“They’ll learn to get along with each other soon enough,” Thea said.

Ominous. Bastion’s breathing hitched. I broke the silence, directing my question at Thea.

“Is. Is there some reason the two of them are here?”

I could swear her face almost cracked from the effort of trying not to smile. “Because Leung and Brandt are your bodyguards now.”

Prudence seemed unsurprised, but Bastion and I must have cried out in protest at precisely the same time.

Bastion piled more kindling on the fire, thrusting an accusing finger in my face. “What makes him so damn important, anyway?”

“Bastion. Shush.” Thea turned to me. “Dustin, I’ve told you enough times. It isn’t safe for you to be out there on your own anymore. But just because there’s all this going down right now, doesn’t mean that your training has to stop. We need all the information we can get, and I trust you enough to initiate your own communion now.”

The memory of Arachne’s domicile, sickly green and venomous, stuck at my throat. “You mean I’m going to talk to an entity?”

“As the initiator, yes, on your own. Prudence and Bastion will accompany you, but only as your protectors. You will perform the ritual to access the domicile yourself, and you will attempt to curry the entity’s favor.” She raised her head just the fraction of an inch higher, as if slightly proud.

“You did so well the last time that I’m confident you’ll do just as well this go around. If you get more information about the murders, so much the better. And if you somehow finagle a contract out of this, well, that would be the very best outcome. It can’t hurt for you to find some way to defend yourself.”

For what felt like the third time, Bastion scoffed.

“Brandt,” Prudence shot out. “Please.” She looked to me, as if sensing my confusion. “A contract represents what an entity might do for you. Think of it as a gift, whether it’s information, or a favor. Even power.”

My spine tingled. “Power?”

Thea nodded. “We all have limits to the magic we can exhaust from our bodies and our surroundings, but an entity – especially a strong one – might grant you the ability to dip into their well, so to speak.”